Mike Balboni woke up to the sounds of shattering glass and his car alarm early Tuesday morning on Edgewood Avenue.

Balboni jumped out of bed and immediately ran out of his home to confront the thieves.

“I went to swing at the kid who was in my car, because he was going through all my stuff. I went to swing at him and he hit me over the head with some sort of brass knuckles or some sort of metal object,” Balboni said.

The blow brought Balboni to the ground, as the three men took off running.

Family members heard the commotion and tried unsuccessfully to chase down the men..

Balboni wound up with five stitches.

“If I knew he had something in his hand, I probably would’ve waited for my brother and my father,” Balboni said.

Natick police say there have been more than 100 car break-ins over the past year throughout the town.

The thieves usually target cars that are only unlocked.

But despite the fact Balboni keeps his car locked and empty of any valuables, Tuesday marked the second time someone had attempted to break into his car.

“They didn’t get anything out of it, and the cops are looking at fingerprints,” he said. “Hopefully they find them.”

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Paul Burton is a general assignment reporter for WBZ-TV News. Burton joined the stations as a participant in the "CBS News Development Program" and from WLNE-TV in Providence, where he worked as a general assignment rep...